The Stresses of a Tough Winter

Ask Real Estate is a new weekly online column that answers questions from across the New York region. Submit yours to realestateqa@nytimes.com.

Nudging the Neighbors to Dig Out

Q. How do I politely nudge my neighbors to shovel their sidewalk or at least break up the ice without offending them? I realize it’s been an overwhelmingly snowy winter, but it is a safety hazard.

Montclair, N.J.

A. As overwhelming as the snow might be, your neighbors are responsible for digging out. Unfortunately, if they haven’t kept up, by now they’re iced in.

“If your property wasn’t cleared correctly, you need to call a mason and tell the mason that you need a wall knocked down,” said John Stefanelli, the owner of Snow Caddies, a snow removal business in Montclair, N.J. “It’s excavation work, that’s what we’re doing. There are people with a five-foot wall of solid ice that isn’t going anywhere.”

Your neighbors might not be irresponsible, but instead, in over their heads. If your neighbor is elderly or infirm, for example, she might not be able to handle the relentless onslaught this winter has delivered. Many of the storms this season have happened midweek. So, a commuter who was marooned by poor transit conditions might have gotten home after snow froze to an impenetrable block of ice. Or a mother with young children might have had no one to watch restless toddlers so she could go out and shovel. Perhaps your neighbor has been out of town and unable to assess the buildup. With these possibilities in mind, knock on your neighbor’s door and ask him how you can help solve the problem, as it is a safety issue for the neighborhood.

“As a good neighbor, I would take the high road and ask: Is there any way I could assist to get this cleared?” said Thomas P. Farley, the owner of What Manners Most, a manners and etiquette consultancy. “You want to presume the best about people.”

If you have a snow blower, perhaps offer to lend it to out. But if the ice is impenetrable at this point, suggest putting down sand to improve traction. You can also suggest that during the next thaw, he should either tackle the ice himself or consider hiring someone to do it for him. If the neighbor is physically unable to do the work, perhaps you could enlist a few neighbors on your block to help with the task because, ultimately, it would be the neighborly thing to do.

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Who Shovels those Vacant Storefronts?

If there is a storefront or two on the block that is empty, who is responsible for shoveling that walk? Is it the owner of the building? How do you lodge a complaint about a consistently unshoveled portion of sidewalk in your neighborhood?

Upper West Side, Manhattan

Property owners are responsible for shoveling their sidewalk, even if they don’t have a tenant renting out the storefront. Even Mayor Bill de Blasio has been spotted digging out his Park Slope, Brooklyn, brownstone — and enlisting his son, Dante, to help. But just because the law is as clear as a sunny day in February, doesn’t mean it’s universally followed. The Department of Sanitation, which oversees rules regarding snow and ice removal, can fine a property owner up to $350 for a violation, which should compel a feckless owner to act.

But for the absentee owner who is nowhere near the property (and won’t suffer the slippery consequences of an untended icy mess), then that pricey ticket might seem like a preferable alternative to hoisting a shovel. In fact, last year, the city only collected 41 percent of the $581,500 in violations it issued, according to the Environmental Control Board, a court where the tickets are filed for hearings and where recipients can contest their tickets. Start by calling 311 if the sidewalk isn’t shoveled four hours after the snow stops (or by 11 a.m., if the snow fell overnight.) If nothing improves, call again to follow up because pestering the city to pester the owner is probably your best bet.

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Parking Papers

Nine months ago my neighbor, who is a lawyer, sold his house and moved. We allowed him to store about 300 boxes of old legal files in our garage, with the understanding that he would come back and move them once he had a place to store them. We have sent two certified letters and have spoken to him several times on the phone. He continues to state that he will come and pick up the boxes. This winter I’ve had to shovel snow off my cars since I cannot park them in the garage because of all the boxes. What are my legal options? I would just like to remove them but am afraid of being sued by him or his former clients.

Morristown, N.J.

Turning your garage into an open-ended free storage locker was exceptionally neighborly of you. Sadly, your neighbor has exploited this act of kindness. Not only is he insensitive, but he is irresponsible. The legal files you’re keeping might be sensitive documents containing information like clients’ Social Security numbers. If you leave them on the curb for trash collection, you could potentially be sued, said Joseph A. Bottitta, a former president of the New Jersey and Essex County Bar Associations.

“Unfortunately, people — even lawyers — take advantage of supposed friendships,” said Michael J. Oliveira, a lawyer in New Jersey.

Send the lawyer one final letter via certified mail advising him that if the boxes aren’t retrieved within 30 days you will ship them to his new address and bill him for the cost. Include a shipping estimate, if you can. Copy the Morris County Bar Association and the Office of Attorney Ethics, a move that might get his attention since lawyers are required to maintain files for a period of years after they are closed, according to Mr. Oliveira. But be prepared to lose the shipping cost, since it’s unlikely the flaky lawyer will remember to send you a check. But at least when the next snowstorm hits, you won’t be scraping ice off the windshields of your cars. Instead, they’ll be back where they belong — in your spacious garage.